Ireland's Peter O'Mahony will captain the Lions in Saturday's first Test against New Zealand.
The Munster flanker won selection ahead of tour skipper Sam Warburton, who takes a seat on the bench for the weekend's Eden Park clash.
The 27-year-old is one of four Ireland internationals named in Warren Gatland’s starting XV for the first of three Tests.
Joining O’Mahony in the pack is prop Tadhg Furlong and back row Sean O’Brien, both Leinster, while Munster man Conor Murray starts at scrum-half.
Out-half Johnny Sexton must make do with a place on the bench with England’s Owen Farrell getting the nod over the Leinster player for the number 10 shirt having shaken off a quad injury.
Leinster prop Jack McGrath is also among the replacements.
Gatland said of his back row selection: "It’s a reward for how the back row has gone.
"There is a nice balance there while Peter captained the side against the Maori All Blacks and has done a good job."
Cardiff and Wales flanker Warburton has scrambled for full match sharpness ever since suffering an ankle problem in the tour-opening 13-7 win over the Provincial Barbarians.
So now Munster's ferocious back-rower O'Mahony will captain the Lions in a Test match - just three months after he was named only on the bench for Ireland's closing Six Nations match against England.
O'Mahony has spent the last 18 months battling persistent knee problems, but has forced a resurgence since the end of the season.
What a brilliant achievement for @peterom6 to captain the @lionsofficial this weekend.
— Brian O'Driscoll (@BrianODriscoll) June 21, 2017
That was all kick-started when Jamie Heaslip suffered a back injury in the warm-up to the March 18 clash with England in Dublin.
The Aviva Stadium crowd cheered loudly when the announcer revealed O'Mahony would replace the injured Heaslip in Ireland's starting line-up.
Joe Schmidt's men went on to dispatch England 13-9, denying the visitors a second straight grand slam and ending their record-winning run at 18 games.
And O'Mahony excelled throughout that victory.
The pack that suffocated the runaway Super Rugby leaders the Crusaders 12-3 in Christchurch starts the first Test, with Warburton primed to join the fray from the bench.
So proud of @peterom6 -friend , neighbour and former client.I predicted he would captain the Lions years ago. Photo of us when he was a kid! pic.twitter.com/XudfHuNjjk
— Frankie Sheahan (@FrankieSheahan) June 21, 2017
Liam Williams has been preferred to Leigh Halfpenny at full-back, while Elliot Daly starts on the left-wing in an attacking back-three.
Halfpenny's omission from the starting XV suggests that fly-half Owen Farrell - fit after a thigh injury scare - will kick at goal, though Wasps star Daly boasts a strong long-range kicking option.
Daly's strong showing in the 36-4 win over the Chiefs on Tuesday night appears to have swayed Gatland's mind to start him for the first Test, with Saracens-bound Williams also having impressed in Hamilton at full-back.
"Elliot has been very accurate in the way he has played and we saw some excellent attacking play from Liam on Tuesday night," said Gatland.
"We are excited about the 15 that take the field but also the very strong and experienced bench players who will have an impact."
Gatland added: "We have picked a side based on form with a lot of players putting their hands up, especially from the Crusaders and Maori All Blacks games, and it was a lively selection meeting.
Congratulations @peterom6 - the @lionsofficial captain for the 1st Test #LionsNZ2017 https://t.co/LZtTLAzrnH pic.twitter.com/NJdA9qtYd2
— Irish Rugby (@IrishRugby) June 21, 2017
"The win against the Chiefs was also extremely important for the squad and some players played themselves into the side.
"We have continuously been strong at set piece and have been good defensively in the last two or three outings.
"But to beat the All Blacks you have to be courageous and play some rugby - you have to score tries and I think we have picked a team capable of doing that."
Earlier the All Blacks named their team, with skipper Kieran Read passed fit after a finger injury.
Lions: Liam Williams, Anthony Watson, Jonathan Davies, Ben Te’o, Elliot Daly, Owen Farrell, Conor Murray, Mako Vunipola, Jamie George, Tadhg Furlong, Alun Wyn Jones, George Kruis, Peter O’Mahony (c), Sean O’Brien, Taulupe Faletau
Replacements: Ken Owens, Jack McGrath, Kyle Sinckler, Maro Itoje, Sam Warburton, Rhys Webb, Jonathan Sexton, Leigh Halfpenny.
Stats (Official Lions website)
- There are seven Test Lions in the starting XV with three more on the bench in a matchday squad combining experience and form.
- Ben Te'o and Sonny Bill Williams will go head-to-head in the centres. The last time they faced off, they were playing rugby league in Australia's NRL.
- Jamie George will start a Test for the very first time on Saturday. All 17 of his England caps have been won coming off the bench
